Vehicle-coupling.



No. 744,875. PATENTED N0V524, 1903. W. NEUMEIER, JR. VEHICLE COUPLING.

APPLIGATIONPILBD JULY 23, 1903.

NO MODEL.

llnrrn Patented November 24, 1903.

AT NJT tribe.

VEHICLE-COUPLING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 744,875. dated November 24, 1903.

' Application filed m 23, 1903. Serial no. 166,764. (No model.)

.To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, WILLIAM NEUMEIER,

Jr., a citizen of the United States, residing at Durant, in the county of Cedar and State of Iowa, have invented a new and useful Vehicle-Coupling, of which the followiugis a specification.

This inventionrelates to devices employed for coupling vehicles of various kinds, as well as'machinery mounted upon wheels, such as threshing-machines, hay-loaders, portable sawing-machine's, and, in fact, any portable machines, whether drawn by horses, by traction-engines, or by other power.

The object of the invention is to simplify and improve devices of the character specified by producinga device which will operate automatically and entirely by gravity,which may be quic'klyand easily uncoupled when required, but'which cannot he accidentally uncoupled, and which may afford support for 1 .a draft member.

' at 10, and to shell or casing 11, is connected in any suitable.

In attaining the objects above. mentioned I employ the novel constructior, and combination of parts'hereinafter sho." I], described, and specified in the claims.

- In the drawings illustrative of the invention, in which corresponding parts are de-,

noted by like designating characters, Figure 1 is a sectionalside elevation, and Fig. 2 is-a plan view of the device.

The improved devices may be attached to any suitable part of the vehicles to be transported; but one part will preferably be connected to the vdraft-tongue end of one vehicle and the other part to the other vehicleat some convenient part, and for the purpose of illustration the two main separable portions are shown thus arranged, although the order might be reversed withoutdeparting from the principle of the invention.

A portion ,of a draft-tongue is represented the free end of this member a manner. Preferably the shell is hollow and the end of the bolted fast, as shown at 12.

In the outer end of the shell 11 a transverse slot 13 is formed with outwardly-curving side walls toprovide for the ready entrance of the coupling member attached to'ngue inserted therein and to the other vehicle, as hereinaftershown. v

The shell member 11 is formed with a stop 14 at one side of therecess 13 and spaced from its inner end, as shown.

Pivoted at 15 between the side members of the shell 11 at the opposite side of the recess 13 from the stop 14 is a latch member 16,h1aving a shoulder 17, engaging the stop 14, and" with an operating-arm 18 extending therefrom and resting upon the upper surface of the tongue member 10, as shown, when the latch is closed, as in Fig. 1.

Thecoupling member is represented at 19 and is provided with an aperture 20 and will be attached in any suitable manner to'. the other vehicle, but preferably to adraft-ton'gue or coupling-bar 21 by-bolts or rivets 22, as shown. By this arrangement it will be obvious that the member 19 when thrust into the recess 13 will displace the latch member and pass beneath it, allowing the free end of the latter to drop by gravity into the aperture 20 afterlthe member 19 has passed, and thus complete the coupling.

The member, 18 is' relatively long andewill be enlarged at its free end, as at 23, to increase 'its Weight, so that it becomes a gravity-latch to act quickly and positively.

It will be noted that the pivot-pin 15 is lo- A cated considerably in advance of the stop 14, which improves the action and increases the safety of the coupling. It improves the coupling action by decreasingthe power required to open the latch-When the member 19 enters and'increases the safety by requiring an increased rearward movement of the inner surfaceof the latch before the latter can be withdrawn.

The location of the pivot-pin 15 in the po-' sition shown also'materially increases the safetyof'the coupling by causing a strong downward pressure against the stop 14 when thestraiu is applied, thus effectually counteractingany tendency of the latch to move upward] y and release itself.

The member 18, as above noted, rests upon the member 10, which thereby materially aids in supporting the latch member and relieves the pin 15 from a large portion of the strain. 100

The parts will be of metal of' sufficient strength to withstand the strains to which they will be subjected and may be increased or decreased, as required, to' adapt them to the work required.

Having thusde scribed my invention, what I claim is- 1. In a device of the character described, a shell or casing having a transverse slot in one end and having a stop at the bottom of said slot, a latch member pivoted in said shell at the top of the slot and in advance of said stop, said latch member extending across the slot and engaging with said stop and having a releasing-arm extending therefrom, andaconpling member of greater width than said shell and having an aperture to receive said latch.'

2. In a device of the character described,'a shell or casing having a transverse slot in one end and provided vwith a stop at the bottom of said slot, a latch member pivoted in said shell, said latch member extending across said slot and having a shoulder-for engagement with said stop and having a releasing-arm extending rearward beyond said shell, and a coupling member of greater width than said shell adapted to fit said slot and having an aperture to receive said latch member.

3. In a device of'the class described, the

combination with a draft-tongue, of a shell or casing havinga transverse slot in one end with a flaring month, said slot being provided in the bottom with a stop, a latch member pivoted in said shell at the upper side of the slot and in advance of' said stop, said latch member extending across the slot and having a shoulder for engagement with said stop, a Weight releasing arm extending rearward from said latch member and resting upon said D. H. SNOKE, F. 'LANGFELDT. 

